 | Hey Team, Shocking, I know. Rarely do I speak in terms of “single best” anything- though if you’re looking a movement that gives you the most bang for your buck, look no further. May I introduce you to...the deadlift. For those who’ve seemingly mastered their deadlift both in form and weight, I’m here to tell you that respectfully, you haven’t. There’s always room for improvement and as we age, our bodies both crave and require appropriate adjustments for the season of life we find ourselves in. On the contrary, if you’re on the couch watching videos of yourself ripping 400+ pounds off the blow in remembrance of the “good old days”, there’s no reason you can’t still be living presently in the good days. The hip cartilage I had at 18 isn’t entirely with us today, but I’ve found new ways to leverage the hinge movement to my benefit. The deadlift is one of the only strength exercises that works your body from head to toe. While its emphasis remains on the posterior chain (essentially the back panel of your body including calves, hamstrings, glutes, back, traps and neck), the rest of your muscles are working in harmony to get the weight up. It’s fantastic for core, teaching you how to brace appropriately, helps with grip strength, a metric surprisingly attached to long term cognitive health, and bodes well rounded benefits other than growing the glutes you’ve always wanted. I’ll get off my soapbox in just a moment but before I do, I must say- the deadlift isn’t just for gains. My father, a 65+ year-old self-employed excavator, started developing musculoskeletal aches and pains a few years back. Not only were his shoulders rounding but his hands were being engulfed in carpal tunnel from having an overhand grip most of the day. We started training together. First, we started on the floor, unlocking tight and trapped muscles through cat/cows, down dogs, hip 90-90’s, and thread-the-needle. Before you strengthen muscles, you must prepare them. Over the first few months we mastered mostly bodyweight and banded exercises, helping him understand proper form and develop the necessary mind-muscle connections for the movement patterns I’d soon be adding weight to. In time, we gradually increased weight and this last Christmas, I got him a 100-pound kettlebell for his deadlifts. Today, he crushes four sets of 15 like a champ, with spot on form. His shoulders are no longer rounded, he’s standing straighter, his carpal tunnel symptoms have decreased and most importantly, he no longer has his daily aches and pains. The deadlift can literally open your body and restore proper posture. Whether you’re new to deadlifting, or you’re a gym rat vet looking for a refresher/reminder on how to get the most out of the lift, peek at the tips below:
- Form First: If it’s new to you, understanding the hinge can be a brain twister. We’ve all heard the expression “lift with your knees!” and while partially true, not entirely true, either. The sentiment of not blowing your back out and slipping a disc is present in the callout, but we first want to get into a healthy hinge position-push your glutes and hips back, establish a slight bend at the waist, slight blend in the knees, nice flat back with a neutral cervical spine, and pick up from there. Try standing in front of a wall to gain awareness, push your glutes back, make contact with the wall, now you’re ready for the rest. We’ll be debuting a “Form First” series in early 2025 for our app users. Stay tuned.
- Pick a Heavier Weight: Hear me out. Part of our teaching with new lifters is to go a bit heavier than we would starting out on stay squats or overhead presses. We want you to immediately feel your glutes and hips driving the movement, rather than using knees or back as the primary muscle movers. This helps tremendously with the learning curve in deadlifting. Your body is typically loud when it comes to telling you what’s achievable versus what’s pushing the limit for the day. Number one, there should never be pain. If pain is present, stop the set and reassess. Have a trusted source watch your form or lower the weight. It’s 2024, we’ve aged out of the concept of “no pain, no gain.” Number two, deadlifts don’t have to be done on a bar. Which leads me to the final point for today...
- Find Your Type: Barbell deadlift should be considered the final stage of your journey with the lift. Though it’s important to note that it isn’t necessarily considered the gold standard of deadlifting. You know your body best, and sometimes that means finding the right version of a movement pattern to get the most out of it for muscle growth and comfort. If you are interested in eventually getting to the bar, here are a few steps in order of implementation:
- Glute Bridge: Teach your body how to drive weight through the glutes on the floor
- Stacked KB Deadlift: Grab a yoga blog and increase the height as your progress, start with the kettlebell sitting on top to decrease the travel distance from waist to floor
- KB Deadlift: Take the training wheels off. Remove the block and lift from the floor. Increase the weight until you find the need to involve plate stacking
- Hex Bar Deadlift: If available, the hex bar with help maintaining form without putting too much strain on the back. Master this bar to move on to the classic barbell.
- Barbell Deadlift: You made it! Increase weight overtime now that you can exert 100+ pounds.
You don’t need to mimic the lift of a top powerlifter to consider yourself an epic deadlifter (we’re making up words in here now). Find your form, choose the type of deadlift that you feel best doing, and work on it every week. Consistency wins, always. Happy lifting! Until next time. 👋 | | | Danielle Bitts
VP of Brand, Bodybuilding.com | | |
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